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The Hummer H2 may have been a caricature from the start, but now it's an affordable caricature.

10 SUVs for under $10K now that gas is cheap again

Make commuting great again with these extra-large chariots

December 7, 2016

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Now that gas prices are almost back to where they were in the days of dial-up internet and baggy jeans, you've no doubt noticed some SUVs on the roads that you haven't seen since the original "Independence Day" was in theaters. Giant SUVs in drydock since the economic crisis are coming out of mothballs and heading to the interstates to hog the left lane, gently swaying into the shoulder as their owners check Facebook.

The once-expensive SUVs of yesteryear are now affordable and disposable, and not only do they cost about the same as a 4-year-old Prius, they can almost fit one inside.

Here are 10 chariots from the highly selective suburban private school drop-off lane that can now be purchased for $10,000 or less:

The original Navigator cashed in on the luxury SUV craze, but it's no longer for the McMansion-filled gated subdivisions.

1. Lincoln Navigator

A baroque byproduct of the sudden commercial success of the Ford Expedition, the 'gator offered exterior styling that looked like an actual gator with its toothy grille, as well as all the luxury items that FoMoCo could cram inside. Debuting for the 1998 model year, the Navigator offered a 5.3-liter Triton V8 producing a grand total of 230 hp -- just enough to allow it to navigate from gas station to gas station -- though a slightly more powerful InTech 5.4-liter V8 was soon swapped into the lineup. Production of the first-gen Navigator lasted until 2002, when it was replaced with another Expedition-derived model.

Ease of Purchase: Plenty can be found for under $5K, but there are reasons for this; so many of these first-gen models were used up by the time gas hit $5.00 a gallon. Unless they were seasonal runabouts at summer homes, most will have cosmetic issues and spotty maintenance histories.

MPG: 11/15 city/hwy (5.4-liter V8).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Destiny's Child.

Interior Smell: Barbecue sauce from that one takeout bag that spilled.

The Excursion is now a niche collector's item.

2. Ford Excursion

The Excursion is nothing short of a legend, combining an interior large enough for playing Jai alai with engines meant for towing vessels larger than the Excursion itself. Two gas and two diesel engines were offered in this juggernaut, with a 6.8-liter Triton V10 and a 7.3-liter Powerstroke V8 turbodiesel being the top units.

Ease of Purchase: While it's certainly possible to find abused Excursions for less than $10,000, the better-kept trucks have been prized collector's items this whole time, with well-maintained examples, particularly diesels, capable of bringing strong money.

MPG: Look, that's not the point. Let's say around 12 mpg combined. But it's a high 12 (actually, it is exempt from EPA testing due to its weight category).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Garth Brooks.

Interior smell: Diesel, empty cans of Skoal.

The Expedition asked America if it wanted to Super-Size its Explorer Value Meal, and America said "yes!"

3. Ford Expedition

The Expedition showed America there was something beyond the Ford Explorer, like an Explorer Deluxe, instantly making the latter seem small and underpowered. The Expedition added more of everything, though its two V8 gas engines seem wheezy by today's standards: the 4.6-liter V8 pumped out just 215 hp at launch, while the 5.4-liter only managed 230 hp.

Ease of Purchase: There are still plenty of these around for very favorable prices, but neglect and deferred maintenance figure prominently in a lot of surviving examples' histories. Second-gen models are very attainable on a $10,000 budget, though the engines offer only modest gains in power. That's fine, as the roads are so clogged due to cheap gas that you won't be racing anyone.

MPG: 11/16 city/hwy (5.4-liter V8)

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Goo Goo Dolls.

Interior smell: Cheeseburger wrappers from after hockey practice.

While some other SUVs made a stab at efficiency, the H2 was unconcerned with such concepts from the outset.

4. Hummer H2

The symbol of an entire era of American automobiles, most H2s were drydocked by the time of the first real gas pinch in 2005, with $100 fill-ups sending people to trade these in for more sensible transportation. Inexplicably cramped inside, the H2 offered a toy-like exterior, lazy and vague driving dynamics, bad visibility and a laughable turning radius. 6.0 and 6.2-liter gas V8s did what they could to propel this cube down the road with the smaller of the two offering 315 hp in weakest tune; not enough to get to 60 mph in less than 10 seconds. But then 60 mph was ill-advised thanks to the H2's motorhome-like handling.

Ease of Purchase: Low-mileage examples will usually show long periods of inactivity, though there are plenty of examples in any mileage and condition range to choose from, given the fact that these were produced all the way through 2009.

MPG: As with the Excursion it's a high 12 mpg combined.

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Staind.

Interior smell: Sun-burnt plastic and moldy leather.

The Escalade may have started out as a lightly-restyled Suburban, but by the second generation it acquired a more distinctive look.

5. Cadillac Escalade

The very first Escalade was a GMC/Chevy truck with a different grille bolted on, but the second generation brought more unique styling which, with the help of some plastic body cladding, hid the Escalade's plebeian roots Potemkin-style. 5.3- and 6.0-liter V8s propelled this living room down America's highways and into rap lyric immortality, shoving aside those still gasping at the gluing of a Cadillac crest to a truck.

Ease of Purchase: These were too valuable to be shipped off to the Balkans when fill-ups started costing over $100, so there are plenty of early examples with mileages cresting 200,000 to choose from. But there are still some low-mileage examples, typically trucks that have been used as seasonal runabouts.

Positioned haphazardly between the Ford Explorer and the Lincoln Navigator, the second-generation Mountaineers represented a tremendous improvement over the clunky first-gen models. A 4.0-liter V6 is a "thrifty" option here but with gas prices being where they are it makes sense to go for the beefier 4.6-liter V8.

Ease of Purchase: Obscurity and a history of relatively gentle use early in life has preserved many examples, and there are still plenty of low-mileage examples to be found. When it comes to attrition it's easier to find unabused, low-mile Mountaineers than other vehicles on this list.

MPG: 13/18 city/hwy (4.6-liter V8).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Matchbox 20.

Interior smell: Exhaust, since the system rusted out back in 2008.

The Envoy was a desperately-stretched TrailBlazer, and it showed. But now it's cheap.

7. GMC Envoy

The Envoy started out modestly enough as one of a bewildering number of TrailBlazer clones, but set itself apart with two long and ungainly models: the three-row Envoy XL and the convertible-ish Envoy XUV. Instead of a third row of seats this model had a pickup bed with a removable top and a midgate to separate the cargo area from the passenger compartment. Two engines were on the menu: a 4.2-liter inline-six and a 5.3-liter V8. GMC later soured on the concept of a pickup truck/SUV combo and phased out the Envoy and its siblings by the end of the decade.

Ease of Purchase: There is no shortage of high-mileage Envoys floating around; if you have your eye on a seven-passenger version there are also the Isuzu Ascender and the Chevy Trailblazer to consider.

MPG: 13/18 city/hwy (5.3-liter V8).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Tim McGraw.

Interior smell: Sweet and sour sauce from that Chinese place that always gave too many sauce packets that inevitably fell out of the bag.

The Suburban was an established nameplate by the 1990s, and can be found in virtually any configuration and price level.

8. Chevrolet Suburban GMT800

This list cannot be complete without a Chevy Suburban, a vehicle that survived every gas crisis and a World War. The GMT800-platform debuted in 2000 along with its GMC and and Cadillac twins, with Chevy offering the greatest number of varieties for this workhorse. Engines ranged from a 5.3-liter V8 to a 8.1-liter V8, which debuted on this model in 2001. Let's not carried away though; cheap gas does not mean you need an 8.1-liter Suburban. Or does it?

Ease of Purchase: Very easy to find in every spec and condition, though the pricier Suburban 2500 with the aforementioned 8.1-liter monster are a little harder to find since they're still working, towing horse trailers and small cruise ships.

MPG: 12/15 city/hwy (5.3-liter V8).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Nelly.

Interior smell: French fries trapped under a couple of rubber floor mats.

The Lexus LX was a new entry on the SUV scene, but it quickly won over buyers with its optional gold-painted badging (dealer installed).

9. Lexus LX 470

In 1995 Toyota gave North America a Land Cruiser with a different front fascia and a more expensive interior, creating the Lexus LX. The first-gen model was a placeholder as the Land Cruiser was showing its age and in 1998 the second-gen model debuted; still a Land Cruiser with a different front fascia and a more upscale interior. A 4.7-liter V8 was the sole engine on the menu, but the interior was modern and reliable.

Ease of Purchase: There are plenty of these (wearing white exterior paint with gold badging) with space probe mileages, and reliability has been good despite some tricky items like adjustable height control.

MPG: 12/15 city/hwy (4.7-liter V8).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Eminem.

Interior smell: Damp carpets from that time the soccer field flooded.

The Durango had been around for a while, but its Aspen twin arrived late on the scene.

10. Dodge Durango

Yeah, this thing's got a Hemi. Even though the Durango could be purchased with a 3.7-liter V6 the top choice was a 5.7-liter Hemi V8, propelling the second-generation SUV that replaced the bulbous first-gen model in 2003. Most of the truckness of the Durango was smoothed out for the 2003 redesign. The aforementioned Hemi produced all of 355 hp, figures now associated with V6 engines or some high-strung inline-fours.

Ease of Purchase: There are plenty of these around at car lots of ill repute, though its Chrysler Aspen twin is a little trickier to find.

MPG: 12/17 city/hwy (5.7-liter V8).

CD Still Stuck in the Changer: Dave Matthews Band.

Interior smell: Skittles that became trapped between the dash and windshield and got baked into the gap by the sun.